The manner in which a stitch pattern is selected within an automatic sewing machine has become increasingly more important in the field of automated sewing. The operator of an automatic sewing machine must quickly and efficiently select the appropriate stitch pattern that is to be sewn in order to achieve a high volume of sewing. This has led to various approaches as to how to communicate the selected pattern to the sewing machine. One approach has been to provide an array of pattern selection buttons or switches on a control panel associated with the sewing machine. Each pattern selection button is associated with a stored stitch pattern residing in an electronic memory that is to be called forth for execution by the sewing machine. This approach works well for a limited number of stitch patterns requiring a relatively small number of pattern selection buttons. It is to be appreciated that this approach becomes less attractive as the number of stitch patterns to be selected becomes relatively high. It is furthermore to be appreciated that even a few stitch patterns will require an appreciable control panel to accommodate the pattern selection buttons. It is still furthermore to be appreciated that the increasing number of pattern selection buttons increases the likelihood of operator confusion and the possibility of pressing the wrong button.